A/N: So, did you like the cliffhanger? Here's another chapter, it took a little longer than I'd hoped but it's been one crazy week. Enjoy! F.

Elaine didn't broach the subject of Abby again until they'd left Tim for the night. Once they were on their way in the hire car and heading towards Waverley University, she turned to Sarah in the backseat.

"So, what is really going on with Abby and Tim?"

Sarah sighed. "They both say they're just friends."

"Uh-huh." Elaine sounded sceptical. "She calls him Timmy, and he lets her. The last time he let any of us call him Timmy, he was in elementary school."

Sarah nodded. "She's been at the hospital every day as well, and"

Suddenly Matthew hushed them from the driver's seat. He'd been searching through radio frequencies for a station he could listen to, and settled on an all news station. Now he turned the volume up, catching the last part of the story that had attracted his attention.

"To recap, there's been a report of a large explosion at the Washington Navy Yard. Authorities are refusing to confirm or deny the cause of the explosion, but it is believed to have been a possible terrorist attack..."

A grim expression on his face, Matthew made a hurried U-turn and headed back in the direction of the hospital.

...

They arrived to find Tim leaning shakily against the desk in the nurses' station, obviously in pain and equally obviously frantic to get out of the hospital. He was demanding to be released when they reached him, insisting that they let him sign himself out.

He shook his parents off when they tried to convince him to stay, telling them "They're my friends; I should be there. What if they're hurt?"

Feeling helpless, Sarah stood back and watched them try to talk Tim into getting back into bed. With a jolt, she suddenly remembered Gibbs giving her his number after Jeff was killed, telling her to call him if she needed anything. She'd stored it in her phone and half forgotten about it. Pulling her phone out of her pocket now, she took a few steps down the hall and dialled the number, hoping he'd pick up.

"Yeah, Gibbs."

"Agent Gibbs, it's Sarah... Sarah McGee. I need your help."

...

Gibbs stared at his cell phone in exasperation. He didn't have time for this right now; he needed to find Abby, and Palmer. They'd both gone missing in the confusion after the blast. But, he reasoned McGee's little sister wouldn't have called him if it wasn't important. So he controlled his impulse to snap.

"What's wrong?"

"It's Tim... He heard about the explosion, he's trying to sign himself out of the hospital. He won't listen to us."

Gibbs cursed under his breath. There was no way he'd be able to convince McGee to stay where he was if he knew Abby was missing. "Put McGee on the phone."

He could hear a brief argument on the other end, and then his agent's voice came over the line.

"Boss."

"McGee, what the hell are you thinking?"

"Boss, I need to get down there. You might need my help."

"Uh-huh." Gibbs was frankly disbelieving. "What I need you to do, McGee, is stay where you are. I'm not risking you getting hurt any more than you already are."

"Gibbs-"

"Stay there, McGee. That's an order. We'll keep you posted."

He severed the connection, hoping he'd managed to keep McGee where he needed to be. He turned and surveyed the scene. Smoke and dust kicked up by the explosion still hung in the air; through the cloud he could see Ducky tending to one of the many wounded. He kept hoping he'd see Palmer doing the same thing, or Abby rushing through the crowd. He'd sent Tony and Ziva off around the edge of the assembly area, searching for his missing people. Not normally one to be afraid, he steeled himself for what he'd have to do next. He'd have to make his way closer to the centre of the explosion; he'd seen the effect of mines when he was serving in the Corp, and it was never a pretty sight. He threaded his way through the crowd of frightened, shocked people, making his way towards the epicentre. Behind him he could hear the teams of EMTs making their way to the people that needed them most. He did his best to direct them to the worst of the injured he came across. As he got closer to the shallow crater the bomb had left, the injuries he saw got worse until finally he started to come across people that were ominously still, and others that were obviously dead. The shrapnel with which Adams had packed his claymore had torn through the crowd here and some of the dead resembled mincemeat. He swallowed against the gorge that rose in his throat and turned away, deciding he didn't want to see Abby or Palmer if they were in this condition.

"Agent Gibbs!"

He heard his name called and swung his head, searching for the source. Palmer was waving frantically at him from a distance, trying to support Abby. She was sagging against Palmer's side, and one side of her face was covered in blood.